Sociology Vs. Psychology: What’s The Difference?

Sociology and psychology are often put together, either in a dual degree or in terms of research. That may lead you to wonder: is one a subset of the other? Are the disciplines linked somehow?

The short answer is NO. Sociology and psychology are different fields of study. There is some overlap between the two on certain issues, but at their core, they focus on entirely different things.

Psychology, in simple terms, is the study of the mind. Psychologists study the brain, human behavior, and mental disorders. Those who study psychology can focus on behavior and personality, or they can study medicine and neuroscience. Psychiatrists, for instance, have both an education in psychology and a medical degree.

Sociology, on the other hand, is the study of human society. Sociologists consider things such as how society functions, what the different parts of society do, and how they work together, as well as society’s effect on humans and human behavior.

Key Takeaways:

What Is Sociology?

Sociology is the study of human society. Sociologists look at how society develops, the way it’s put together, and how it works. Those who study the discipline will look at different social institutions, such as governments, religions, and legal systems in order to understand more about societies.

In addition to that, sociology also considers how society affects the people who live in it. Social problems are a major field of sociological study and include subjects such as racism, sexism, income disparity, and unemployment. This can also be turned directly onto a particular section of society, such as the medical field.

Sociology is a new science, only really being considered academically at the end of the 19th century. The man who is considered the father of modern sociology is Auguste Comte, as he was the first to define it in its modern conceit. There were also many precursors, some of which are household names, such as W.E.B. Du Bois and Karl Marx.

Neither man is particularly known for his contributions to the science of sociology, with Marx more famous for his political machinations and Du Bois for his efforts on civil rights. However, their writings also included sociological observations.

What Is Psychology?

Psychology is the study of the human mind. Psychologists study human behavior, mental disorders, and, in some cases, neuroscience.

While psychology is most known for dealing with mental and personality disorders, those in the field study more than that. Of course, they work on understanding and treating various mental illnesses, but they also work to understand how the brain works and normal human behavior. It’s hard to peg something as abnormal without being able to define what “normal” is.

Psychology is also a relatively new science, though not quite as recent as sociology. The idea of mental philosophy stretches back quite a ways, though the idea of modern psychology was created by Wilhelm Wundt, who was the first to open an institute at a university in Germany.

The most famous early psychologist is no doubt Sigmund Freud, who conceived the idea of the subconscious. Another luminary in the early field was Carl Jung, who founded a branch of the discipline called analytical psychology.

Tips for Understanding Sociology

• Sociology is the study of societies, which means it doesn’t focus on people on an individual level.

• One of the most important aspects of sociology is the idea of sociological imagination. While the name sounds silly, it represents the concept of looking at an individual’s life through the lens of society.

  For instance, if someone is unemployed in an area with a 99% employment rate, then that’s a personal issue. But if they’re unemployed in an area with a 50% unemployment rate, then that’s a societal issue.

• Being a new science, there are several warring ideas of social structure that still have prominence. Here’s a brief summary of the most popular ones:

  • Functionalism. This is the idea that each aspect of society – government, the justice system, religious institutions – are like the organs in an organism. They are required in order for society to function, and they need one another to work as well.

  • Conflict Theory. This approach emphasizes the differences in social status and other societal problems and conflicts, postulating that that’s why societies end up structured the way they are. The rough essence of this is that society is built the way it is because it benefits the rich and powerful.

  • Symbolic Interactionism. This idea is more renowned in many ways. The concept behind it is that society is a collective construct that’s built through countless individual social interactions with one another.

    It’s ever-changing because of this and is built on the collective symbols and interactions with one another.

  • Utilitarianism. Those who subscribe to this model believe that every individual acts solely to maximize their own self-interest. Each individual looks at a situation and makes a choice based on what will serve them best.

Tips for Understanding Psychology

• Psychology is the study of the mind and human behavior, which means it focuses very much on the individual level.

• Psychology also deals with brain development, neuroscience, and mental disorders.

• As the field of psychology is a new science, there are still several major theories vying for dominance. Here are some of the most prominent ones:

  • Biological. This is the idea of neuroscience and the idea that different biological aspects of a person’s brain determine their thought process and create disorders.

  • Behaviorist. Those that subscribe to behaviorist psychology believe that behaviors are learned. There are genuine studies and results that have come out of this, such as the alteration of unwanted behavior through reward or punishment – called classical conditioning.

  • Cognitive. This theory focuses on mental processing as well as perception and language comprehension. So it’s the psychology of how people think and how their brain stores and accesses information.

    The idea of confirmation bias came out of this. There’s also a well-known study where the administrators would write out a color, such as blue, but turn the text red. Subjects were slower to read the word, and some would say red rather than blue.

  • Psychoanalytic. This is the part of psychology that Sigmund Freud worked with and made famous. The basic idea behind it is that the majority of our reactions and mental deviations stem from our unconscious – often from events that happened to us as children.

    This theory has received some strident criticism, and though there are several variations of it still in practice today. Certainly, Freud’s idea of repression – especially sexual repression – was and is controversial.

Sociology vs. Psychology FAQ

1. What is the relationship between sociology and psychology?

   There is no direct relationship between sociology and psychology – they’re different disciplines.

   That being said, they both study human behavior and what affects it, but from different perspectives and lenses. Psychology is very focused on the individual and what drives behavior and thought on an individual level. Sociology focuses on more of the collective, as society is formed through a large group of human beings.

2. Is sociology easier than psychology?

   No, sociology isn’t easier than psychology. In their essence, they are both scientific fields that study human behavior. Psychology focuses on the individual’s brain and behavior, while sociology focuses more broadly on collectivist tendencies, such as building societies and the effect society has on its denizens.

   It can be argued that if you choose to become a psychiatrist and have to study medicine and neuroscience, then that is more difficult than most of what you learn in sociology. However, psychology and sociology are both considered “soft sciences,” which roughly means they aren’t as mathematically rigorous.

3. What can I do if I study psychology or sociology?

   There are many different jobs you can do with a psychology or sociology degree. Both disciplines have wide applications ranging from human resources to marketing to social work. Of course, you can also pursue a career as a psychologist or sociologist, but that requires higher-level learning.

   Psychology is a very popular degree at the moment, particularly among women, which means there’d be a high level of competition with other psychology majors.

4. What are the similarities between sociology and psychology?

   Sociology and psychology are similar in that they are both social sciences. Both study human behavior and humanity. Both are relatively new disciplines, getting real academic recognition in the late 1800s.

Author

Di Doherty

Di has been a writer for more than half her life. Most of her writing so far has been fiction, and she’s gotten short stories published in online magazines Kzine and Silver Blade, as well as a flash fiction piece in the Bookends review. Di graduated from Mary Baldwin College (now University) with a degree in Psychology and Sociology.